Protesters nuke Dutton appearance with former minister
A trio of unionists clad in hazmat suits and wielding mock Geiger counters have gatecrashed Opposition Leader Peter Dutton's press conference in a marginal seat.
Mr Dutton was at Sanctuary Point on the NSW South Coast to make a modest funding announcement for a local junior rugby league team when the pantomiming protesters, led by South Coast Labour Council secretary Arthur Rorris, walked onto the field and shouted mock warnings about radiation.
"Stay back everybody," they warned, pretending to measure out a site for a nuclear power plant.
"We're just checking for radiation."
Mr Dutton was about to hold a press conference alongside the Liberal candidate for Gilmore, Andrew Constance, who is making his second attempt to win the electorate won by Labor's Fiona Phillips with just 373 votes in 2022.
It is also the former Liberal NSW state minister's fifth attempt to enter federal parliament, including two failed senate pushes and another for the lower house seat of Eden-Monaro.
A few more days of campaigning remain before the federal election on Saturday.
The chaos at Sanctuary Point intensified when a group of local kids showed up.
Shoalhaven councillor Selena Clancy encouraged the youngsters to shout over the nuclear farce.
"You're scaring the children!" Cr Clancy yelled, while a club official called Mr Rorris an "absolute muppet".
Mr Dutton had been chatting with locals when the disruption occurred.
One supportive attendee, Michael King, said Mr Constance had his vote while hinting at his disappointment with Labor's climate policy.
"We cannot make any difference in our global environment, so why would you shoot yourself in the foot?" he told reporters.
Climate change is a contentious issue in the electorate, with Climate 200-backed independent Kate Dezarnaulds taking aim at Mr Constance for a perceived retreat from his support for climate action following the 2019/20 bushfires.
But some elements of the electorate are vocally against Labor's renewable energy push, specifically offshore wind farm developments off the picturesque coast.
Liberal Party media advisers were unable to clear off the protesters, and the local police in attendance were powerless to move them on from a public space, so the press conference was cancelled and the media pack bundled back onto Mr Dutton's campaign bus.
Earlier on Tuesday, Mr Dutton visited a green grocer in Nowra, a 30-minute drive from Sanctuary Point, where he talked with a business owner about the rising cost of living and high energy costs.
It comes after Mr Dutton's electorate office in Brisbane was vandalised with red paint and posters criticising his stance on the war in Gaza and closeness to US President Donald Trump.
An 18-year-old woman has been charged with one count of wilful damage and is due to face Brisbane Magistrates Court on May 20.
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